


This Time With Feeling

by Intergalactic_Octopus



Series: The Stained Hands Series [2]
Category: Mass Effect, Mass Effect 2 - Fandom
Genre: Biracial Shepard, Biracial Zaeed, F/M, Flirting, Friendship, Jealousy, Pre-Relationship
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-06-15
Updated: 2016-06-15
Packaged: 2018-07-15 04:14:44
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,654
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7207451
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Intergalactic_Octopus/pseuds/Intergalactic_Octopus
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Sequel to Stars Make me Choke. </p><p>While waiting for the Reaper IFF to load, Shepard takes inspiration from Garrus’ story about “reach and flexibility” and brings the crew together for a friendly sparring match. Bragging rights and a few hundred credits on the line. Shepard and Zaeed face off in friendly hand to hand combat while dealing with the boundaries of their new friendship. This is especially difficult when other feelings make the situation a little more complicated.</p>
            </blockquote>





	This Time With Feeling

**Author's Note:**

> The numbers are for clarification points that will appear in the endnotes or just commentary I wanted to put in. This is in case I make a joke wasn’t picked up. The rest of the notes on this fic and the future of the series are at the end.

“You gonna fight me or you just gonna dance?” Zaeed taunted with his feet planted firmly on the sparring mats. His heavy body grounded firmly in place with his hands held surgeon steady at eye level.

 

“It’s called style, Massani. You should get some.” Katrina shot back and lightly bounced on her feet in the ten foot circle sparing space while rapidly punching the air with her fists.

 

Since Zaeed’s breakdown and their subsequent bonding experience, the two had become a lot closer. She’d gotten to know him a little more than a revenge obsessed man. There were layers to him she hadn’t seen before. Not like a cake though. He didn’t stop being the gruff sneering mercenary just because she caught him crying. He was more like an onion (1). Sort of food but better with another food stuff to balance it out. He’d never admit that though.

 

They also seemed to have the same criteria for friendship. That made it real easy. Both of them came from a rough past filled with betrayal. Trust was a hard one commodity that they didn’t throw around all willy nilly. But once it was gained. Once a person was worthy, they were entitled to loyalty, companionship and the occasional drinking contests. Katrina never noticed just how cold they were to each other until they were actually getting along. The early morning grunts over breakfast and the vague eye contact they shared passing each other in the hallways became a thing of the past. All of a sudden it turned to jokes over breakfast and pleasant teasing about each other’s visible faults. His favorite one to throw at her was a “dad” joke over coffee.

 

“ _You want some coffee with your cream and sugar?” He’d croak over his black cup of coffee._

 

_“Better than pretending to like bitter coffee so people will think I’m all grown up.” She’d tease back, resting against the kitchen counter._

 

_“I’m plenty grown. You were the one just born yesterday.” He’d joke and she’d laugh hard._

 

_They’d go back and forth until the coffee in their hands had gone cold and barely touched._

 

 “Stop talking and throw a punch!” Grunt shouted. He’d been knocked out of the completion, literally, when he charged at Garrus but was immediately thrown over the Turian’s shoulder and out of the ring.

 

“Shove it with the goddamn commenta-“He was interrupted with a very quick, very sharp punch to the face. Blood tricked down his nose and over his lips as Shepard winked.

 

“C’mon old man. Throw a punch.” She repeated and swung at him again. This time the mercenary was able to duck, a smile stretched the wrinkles on his face.

 

“Oh, you’re gonna fucking get it, Barbie.” He put his finger to one nostril and shot out some blood with a quick blow. Somewhere in the back of her mind, Shepard could her Rupert complaining about the mess they were making.

 

Shepard threw another punch, aiming for his stomach this time. Before it made contact he grabbed her arm by the elbow and attempted to pull her into his body for a hold. Must have been trying to throw her out of the ring. Now, having been, A) A small woman most of her life, B) raised in a piss hole by gang members and C) A highly trained military officer, instinct immediately took over and she dropped all her body weight to the ground. This messed up both Zaeed’s balance and grip and he lost his hold on her arm while she slipped between his legs and behind her.

 

Her small but cybernetically enhanced fists darted forward and caught him square in the kidney. Pain shot up his back and he stumbled forward a bit but was able to turn around to swing at her. A slow but powerful fist meant for her left shoulder. Luckily she managed to duck out of the way in time. It was like a hammer trying to swat a fly. She knew she was faster and lighter on her feet. So statistically speaking, he couldn’t touch her. But boy, if he managed to tag her, it would knock her off balance to say the least.  

 

And if she knew that, The-Right-Man-For-The-Right-Pay, Zaeed must have realized it too. Because when she went to throw another punch, he lunged at her. Both arms out stretched and they wrapped around her stomach, pulling her into a bear hug and hard against his chest.

 

“You give?” He was out of breath, his skin was flushed red but smugness pulled his thin lips into a wide grin.

 

“Not on your fucking life.” She wiggled, trying to get out of his grasp. If this was a real fight she would have gone for his eyes but she needed his sharp eyes (eye) for to take down the Collectors. So dirty moves were out of the question. Before she could drop to the ground he picked up, suspending her just enough so that she couldn’t try that trick again.

 

“Give up, or I’ll embarrass you.” He grinned, taking a step forward. He was going to just fucking carry her over the circle line and drop her over the line like a child or a misbehaving pet. 

 

“Go fuck yourself.” She spat, squirming a bit more in his grasp. It wasn’t much but it was just enough to put a little space between them and wedge her knees in-between their chests. In one swift movement she stretched out her legs, digging them into his stomach and breaking his grip. Before she fell she grabbed on to his arms and kicking him forward down on his back with a loud thunk. Almost out of the ring but not quite.  

 

Before he could react, she was on top of him, pinning knees down with her strong thighs and his arms held down by his elbows.

 

“You give?” She smirked, her own wrinkled faced creasing from grinning.

 

“You’re supposed to get me out of the ring, not fucking pin me. Though…“ He panted from exhaustion but still playfully eyed her chest in his face. “Don’t mind the view down here.” His laugh was cut short when she gripped hard down on the joints of his elbow, making him hiss in pain.

 

“Someone remind me, is it whole body out of the ring or just a part?” She called out boldly, feeling Zaeed struggle under him but unable to move due to danger of her seriously injuring his knees and elbow.

 

“Just body part.” Garrus answered first. He was to fight Thane next. The turian already said before when she offered to spar that he didn’t want to be in the list of people that Shepard put on their ass but he couldn’t resist. The wild streak he had two years ago hadn’t been killed on Omega it seemed.

 

“Just a body part.” She repeated, tightening her grip on his left arm and moving it across the floor and arching his hand almost out of the circle.

 

This was his chance. Zaeed tried to wrestle his right arm free since she was occupied with his left. She had more stamina, but she didn’t have the reach to handle both of his arms at once. A mixture of sweat and leverage allowed him to snatch his right arm free and he immediately went for the throat, wrapping his tattooed hand around Katrina’s neck.

 

The sudden lack of air caught her off guard and she tried to get free, which coincidently meant lifting up off him an inch. That was enough for him. He jerked his legs from under her and wrapped them around her waist. And how the turntables (2). In a second he was flipping them over so that she was now on her back and he was on top. He’d pinned her arms down with one hand, his bigger hands her smaller wrists made that move possible. Sweat dripped down his face and chin and cleaned his brow proudly before looking down at her.

 

“Kinda like the view up here a little better.” He laughed and Shepard couldn’t help but laugh as well.  His stupid hollow flirts were funny and distracting. If they were in a movie, they’d retreat to her cabin for post workout “work out.” Sort of like Garrus’ story. A would-they-won’t-they, friends-to-fucking conclusion. Truth was the only place they were going was Chakwas' office for a check over and maybe some pain meds. Shepard was probably going to spend the rest of her night with Thane and Zaeed was going to do whatever the fuck he did in his junk shed alone. But they’d probably meet in the middle again sometime for a late meal.

 

“You still haven’t won.” She smiled through labored breaths. “ _You’re supposed to get me out of the ring, not fucking pin me._ ” She still had enough air to mimic him and the group around them laughed a bit.

 

“You fucking little smart ass.” He reached down with his free arm and grabbed one of her wrists, having her arms fully pinned down now. He then attempted the same maneuver she’d tried, trying to move her hand out of the ring. With greater ease too since he had the size to handle both limbs. There was one flaw in his plan though.

 

In his gloating and teasing he forgot to pin her legs down as well. She twisted her lower body, letting the rest of her follow. Zaeed, having had put the majority of his weight down on her, toppled off her and rolled clean out of the ring.

 

“That’s for the Barbie comment.” She huffed, getting on her hands and knees to catch her breath before getting up. She straightened her back with a few popping joint noises and countless aches that would hurt in the morning.

 

Zaeed, still on the ground, sneered at her but extending his arm up. “Little fucking help.” He wiggled his hand impatiently and Shepard laughed, taking his hand and helping him up off the group with a quick tug.

 

“Sour loser.” She teased and he just snorted, brushing off his ass.

 

“Woulda won if you weren’t so damn slippery. You’re like a bar of soap in a shower.” He said, stretching out his own aching body. Being both a bit older than her and less cyborg, his body was going to hurt a lot longer. There was probably a broken rib in there somewhere. A (couple) glass(es) of bourbon, a few pain pills, and a good long nap would do him just right he figured.

 

“I don’t know if that’s in complement or an insult but I’m going to take offense from that.” She laughed. ‘Next mission with husks, I’m putting you right up front.” She threatened and Zaeed visibly recoiled. He fucked hated those nasty things and set fire to damn near everything in his path to get rid of them (3).

 

“That’s what I thought.” She smirked, patting him on the back.

 

“Congratulations, Siha.” Thane approached her, placing his hand on the small of her back and pressing his lips to her forehead.

 

“Why thank you.” Shepard said pridefully. “If you whoop Garrus’ ass, I could be fighting you in the last round.” She said playfully, looking Garrus directly in the eye while she talked around him.

 

“Hey!” Garrus shouted, making his way toward the ring and standing by Zaeed’s side to talk before the next match.

 

“Was looking forward to fighting you, Thane.” Zaeed said. It came out far more hostile than he planned and he wasn’t sure where it came from. Lucky for him, no one noticed and if they did they didn’t say anything about it. Probably just chalking it up the normal gruffness that came with his tone and appearance.

 

“As was I. While our styles are very different you are very adaptive to your surroundings just like an assassin. You have to be in this line of work I suppose. I cannot say being on this ship hasn’t affected me.” He smiled. “I’ve gotten into the terrible habit of wondering who could beat who in a fight.” Thane reciprocated with a laugh. There was no hint of malice in his voice. Just professional and friendly curiosity.  

 

“Well Zaeed and I fight _about_ the same.” Shepard commented. “When you stomp Garrus.” She eyed the turian again who was, as best she could tell, rolling his eyes at her. “You’ll get to see.”

 

“Well then, I suppose we will.” Thane chuckled, walking with Katrina a few steps away so they could talk in private.  

 

Garrus was attempting to talk with Zaeed about something or other but the mercenary wasn’t paying attention. He didn’t mean to ignore him. He actually liked Garrus. He was one of the few on the ship he didn’t mind working with. It was just, well… Every so often out of the corner of his eye he’d see Shepard laugh at something Thane said. Or he’d see Thane stroke her cheek gently and she’d damn near melt under his touch. And it made his stomach twist in knots and his chest heat up for no reason. They were commands first and friends at best. Though, the change in their relationship to anyone else was the equivalent to a man dramatically shrugging (4). It made sense to him and there was nothing more to it. He couldn’t find one damn reason for him to be so visibly bothered by their public display of affection.

 

“Get a room you two.” He sneered, rationalizing his disgust at just all PDA in general. Shepard just rolled her eyes and said a few more words to Thane before sending him to the circle ring with a gentle pat on the back.

 

“Have I been talking to a wall? Hello?” Garrus said loudly, snapping Zaeed back to the fact he’d been staring at Shepard and Thane for a while. 

 

“I’m going to Chakwas’.” Zaeed announced, rubbing his sore ribs and leaving Garrus’ one sided conversation to head to the elevator.

 

“You not staying?” Shepard asked as he passed by her. He stopped, but kept his eyes forward. Personality wise he was never afraid to look someone in the eye. Hell, he used it to intimidate people when they got on his nerves. But he couldn’t look at her. Not with all the conflicting feelings swimming around inside him.

 

“No.” He said shortly, rubbing his rib again. It had to be the body pain. The body pain was the reason he felt so uncomfortable.

 

“I kick you too hard?” She asked, reaching for his side but he stepped away.

 

“No, just tired.” His voice was cold and distant.

 

“Oh.” She said, picking up on whatever attitude he had and turning her head back to the ring. Garrus and Thane were about to spare and if he wasn’t going to talk she wasn’t going to make him. “See you at mess then?” She ask as a one last attempt to salvage the repertoire they’d built over the past few weeks.

 

“Maybe.” He said, now scratching the back of his head and retreating into the elevator.

 

Shepard watched the elevator close and the numbers on the dial move up. She rubbed the skin between her thumb and forefinger, annoyed at his sudden standoffish behavior. _What the fuck is his deal?_  She asked herself.   _If he’s that big of a sour loser he shouldn’t have agreed to fucking spar._ She pinched the skin a little before turning back to the fight.

 

Lucky for her she looked back just in time to see Thane twisting Garrus’ arms unnaturally and uncomfortably back behind his back and walking him out of the ring. The crowd laughed, including Shepard and she stepped forward to tease the ever loving fuck out of Garrus.

 

Some artwork from my Art Blog that goes with this story:

http://puzzlegirlsstudio.tumblr.com/image/144645375502

**Author's Note:**

> You all know I ship ZaeedXShepard so trying to flesh out the start of this crush/attraction they’ll have has been a challenge. I didn’t want it to end nice because I don’t think Zaeed would handle developing a crush on her “nice”. He’s fine when it’s just them two but when Thane comes along, he’s jealous, standoffish and rude and as of yet hasn’t figured out exactly why. 
> 
> My next one won’t flip flop around the characters and the focus will mainly on Zaeed and his forming crush. How will he handle it? Find out next time on Dragon Ball: Z!
> 
> (1) Yes this is absolutely a Shrek reference. I’m not sorry.  
> (2) This is a The Office reference lol.  
> (3) There is missing dialogue in Mass Effect 3 when you talk to Zaeed on the shipping container. Link: https://youtu.be/jOCF7PtHY1M It gives background for why Zaeed is purposefully targeting Cerberus bases because they tried to turn him into a Husk. So personal head canon ,even before that, is that he doesn’t care for Husks.  
> (4) ¯\\_(ツ)_/¯
> 
> If you thirst for romance content now though, Check out my art blog at [ Zaeed Massani ](http://8-legs.tumblr.com/tagged/zaeed%20massani) for some individual Zaeed pictures but MOSTLY Shep/Zaeed pictures. Also if you want some NSFW stuff, ask me on that blog over there and I’ll give you the blog name.


End file.
